Usain Bolt May Lose Beijing Relay Gold After Teammate Carter Caught For Dope

Sprint king Usain Bolt could lose his 2008 Beijing Olympics relay gold medal for no fault of his. Bolt's teammate Nesta Carter's B sample has reportedly returned positive for use of a banned substance, Methylhexanamine.

Jamaica sprinted to the gold medal with Bolt anchoring the final leg. Carter ran the first leg. The Jamaica Olympic Association (JOA) admitted last Friday that one of its competitors had returned an adverse analytical result but did not name the athlete.

Reuters has reported that Carter's B sample returned positive for a banned stimulant. Methylhexanamine has been on the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Code prohibited list since 2004 although it was reclassified on the 2011 list as a "specified substance".

Carter has been an important member of Jamaica's relay quartet. He has helped the Caribbean island win gold medals at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics and the 2011, 2013 and 2015 world championships.

Although Carter's relay teammates Bolt, Asafa Powell and Michael Frater are not accused of doping, it is possible the International Olympic Committee could strip them of their gold medals due to Carter's B-sample testing positive. And there is precedence.

The American 4x400 relay squad at the 2000 Sydney Olympics were stripped of their medals after Antonio Pettigrew admitted a doping offence and had all his results from January 1997 onwards disqualified.

"It's rough in the sport," the six-times Olympic champion Bolt told British media last week. "Something that's been tarnishing the sport for years."

The IOC said it would begin re-testing athletes likely to take part in the Rio Games to prevent any drug cheats from competing.

(With inputs from Reuters)